EU Battery Regulation (2023/1542)

[DJUNGELSKOG]

Originally Posted by John F

SO, the EU people got what they wanted, and now they are whinging about it.

We aren't?

[Ricky D'Angelo]

Apparently, at least one version of the new kindles was designed to easily replace a battery. Compared to the difficulty of removing the back cover on my kindle keyboard this video made it look much easier to take off the back cover of this new kindle.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LglACghKHu4

[DiapDealer]

No way that was the very first time that back was popped off.

[Frogm4n]

IMO it's silly that it's being claimed it's loose to make battery changes easy. It looks more like a design or manufacturing flaw. They used screws on the aluminum version because they didn't want it to come off easily. Why would the plastic version of the same model be any different? And why not the rest of the all new models?

[DiapDealer]

Originally Posted by Frogm4n

IMO it's silly that it's being claimed it's loose to make battery changes easy.

Agreed.

Originally Posted by Frogm4n

It looks more like a design or manufacturing flaw.

It's my opinion that the back on the device had already removed and replaced several times before that video was made. There's no way the back on only one new Kindle model would have been made to pop off easily (with only fingers) just to make it easier to change the battery.

[salamanderjuice]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

Agreed.


It's my opinion that the back on the device had already removed and replaced several times before that video was made. There's no way the back on only one new Kindle model would have been made to pop off easily (with only fingers) just to make it easier to change the battery.

Why not? A lot of phones in the 2010-2015 era had similar back panels. This looks slightly tougher but it's not like waterproof so it doesn't need to be impossible.

Unless the clips broke why would it be easier if it was removed once or twice?

[DiapDealer]

Originally Posted by salamanderjuice

Unless the clips broke why would it be easier if it was removed once or twice?

I never said "once or twice." I said "several" Open and replace the the back on such a device 6-8 times and you tell me why it gets easier. They get clapped out like anything else does when you pry them apart repeatedly. I'm saying THAT device was made to look easy for youtube. No brand new, non-defective, non-prepped Kindle device would be able to be pried apart with bare hands. Not unless all new Kindle devices bound for the EU were able to be.

[salamanderjuice]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

I never said "once or twice." I said "several" Open and replace the the back on such a device 6-8 times and you tell me why it gets easier. They get clapped out like anything else does when you pry them apart repeatedly. I'm saying THAT device was made to look easy for youtube. No brand new, non-defective, non-prepped Kindle device would be able to be pried apart with bare hands. Not unless all new Kindle devices bound for the EU were able to be.

But why? Even for YT clickbait I don't see why?

Have you tried this? It's supposed to be easier and with no special tools, the aluminum models use a standard screwdriver but a clip retention system isn't really an option there. Are spudgers considered standard tools like screwdrivers? Maybe Amazon erred on the side of easy? They were never required to make the battery easily replaceable for any market.

[DiapDealer]

No "special tools" is a misleading term. Plastic spudgers are not "special" enough to be included. Think "proprietary." I've never opened a plastic cased kindle without needing at least one spudger (and usually several to keep them from snapping back together). And yes, I've opened countless plastic devices (including Kindles) countless times. They get easier to open after several times.

You've already answered the "why". When it comes to Youtube, there is no more "why" needed than clickbait. And it worked. People already think Kindles must be easy to open because of it.

The bottom line is that unless all Kindle devices bound for the EU after the law was announced fall apart like this one did, then this one is a special snowflake. Obeying EU law on this is not going to result in devices that can be opened by hand without tools. This has been discussed. The words "easily replaced" do not even occur in the wording of the EU decision.

A portable battery should be considered to be removable by the end-user when it can be removed with the use of commercially available tools and without requiring the use of specialised tools, unless they are provided free of charge, or proprietary tools, thermal energy or solvents to disassemble it. Commercially available tools are considered to be tools available on the market to all end-users without the need for them to provide evidence of any proprietary rights and that can be used with no restriction, except health and safety-related restrictions.

[JSWolf]

These new Kindle do not need to be easy to replace the battery. The law is not active until sometime in February 2027.

[salamanderjuice]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

These new Kindle do not need to be easy to replace the battery. The law is not active until sometime in February 2027.

Do you seriously think they will introduce a new model between now and February?

[salamanderjuice]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

No "special tools" is a misleading term. Plastic spudgers are not "special" enough to be included. Think "proprietary." I've never opened a plastic cased kindle without needing at least one spudger (and usually several to keep them from snapping back together). And yes, I've opened countless plastic devices (including Kindles) countless times. They get easier to open after several times.

You've already answered the "why". When it comes to Youtube, there is no more "why" needed than clickbait. And it worked. People already think Kindles must be easy to open because of it.

The bottom line is that unless all Kindle devices bound for the EU after the law was announced fall apart like this one did, then this one is a special snowflake. Obeying EU law on this is not going to result in devices that can be opened by hand without tools. This has been discussed. The words "easily replaced" do not even occur in the wording of the EU decision.

I'm pretty cynical but I'm having a tough time believing this. If the Thumbnail was him opening it with one hand with a shocked face and the title was "Wow! Kindle opens so easy a baby a could do it" or something you might be on to something. But it's not, so what's to gain? Especially when in a few days/weeks we will probably see a guide from iFixit.

You need a screwdriver to get the battery out. So there's still tools. I just think the back could easily come off with just fingernails. It's not unbelievable. Previously Amazon wasn't designing for the user to access at all. Probably optimizing for cost or feel or both. The previous basic model used double sided tape for example.

[DiapDealer]

Originally Posted by salamanderjuice

I just think the back could easily come off with just fingernails.

I don't.

Originally Posted by salamanderjuice

It's not unbelievable.

It is to me. It's very unbelievable. But we're not going to convince one another, so I'll just wait until enough people have the bloody broken fingernails to prove it.

[John F]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

These new Kindle do not need to be easy to replace the battery. The law is not active until sometime in February 2027.

Jon, see the quote above your post.

[theducks]

Originally Posted by salamanderjuice

You need a screwdriver to get the battery out. So there's still tools. I just think the back could easily come off with just fingernails. It's not unbelievable. Previously Amazon wasn't designing for the user to access at all. Probably optimizing for cost or feel or both. The previous basic model used double sided tape for example.

Special tools prohibition is to prevent them from requiring proprietary or tools not found in common hardware stores. IIRC Early Apple models had a long shaft screwdriver with a less common (at the time) tip needed to open.